In an unprecedented challenge, Lithuanian glider pilots Algirdas Šimoliūnas, Sakalas Uždavinys, and Ignas Bitinaitis, plan to cross Europe in a glider, without an engine, during this month of August.
With a trajectory that already includes gliding flights over the Baltic States in 2016 and up to the Black Sea in Ukraine in 2018, the three pilots now aspire to their greatest feat: reaching the Atlantic Ocean coast in Portugal, becoming the first to traverse the old continent without an engine. To achieve this ambitious endeavor, they will have to cover a distance of approximately 4000 km.
The pilots plan to complete the journey within ten days, doubling the time they took to get to the Black Sea from Lithuania. They have chosen Portugal as a destination for its historical significance, as this year marks the 90th anniversary of the transatlantic flight of Lithuanian aviators Darius and Girėnas, as well as its position as one of the European countries furthest from Lithuania.
According to the team captain, A. Šimoliūnas, «Flying to Portugal is our greatest challenge to date. Personally, I want to fly across Europe, the different countries, their cultures, and thus inspire freedom and courage in myself and all Lithuanians«.
The proposed route, which includes Lithuania, Poland, Germany, France, Spain, and finally Portugal, is subject to variations depending on the weather conditions. As gliders use warm air currents to rise, they are extremely sensitive to weather conditions and the terrain over which they fly. Heat is essential for successful flight, while strong winds and rain are obstacles that pilots will try to avoid.
If weather conditions require it, the pilots plan to adapt the flight route on the fly, being able to choose between northern and southern routes and counting on a network of about 10 aerodromes throughout different European countries where they could land if necessary.
In addition to the complexity of navigation, the pilots must also coordinate flight plans daily. «For those of us who do not fly daily in international areas, coordinating flight plans will be quite a challenge«, admitted Šimoliūnas.
With regard to engineless flight operation, pilots use warm air currents, known as thermal columns, to ascend. In favorable weather conditions, a glider can reach speeds of up to 200 km/h and fly up to 1000 km in a single day (the Lithuanian pilots plan to fly between 400 and 500 km per day). If a warm air current is not found, the pilot must land at the nearest aerodrome or in an appropriate landing area, such as a meadow or field.
The launch of a glider requires a runway of at least 500 meters and the aid of a plane or a launch winch. The glider rises to an altitude of approximately 600 meters before releasing itself and continuing its flight.
«When you fly the route in a single line, crossing many different air currents, you can see approximately 50 km ahead and you don’t know what’s coming next. There are situations where it seems that the air is there, the clouds are there, but you enter a descending area where the speed starts to drop 3 m/s and you lose all the altitude you need very quickly. In reality, you sometimes have between 5 and 10 minutes before the descent. The glider pilot has to be able to orient himself, to decide what to do next«, says A. Šimoliūnas.
The historic flight is scheduled for the 10th and 11th of August of this year, marking a new page in the history of aviation in Lithuania and around the world.
